Date: 6/23/25 7:30 pm From: Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> Subject: [NEBirds] Calamus birding
Nebraska birders,
Paul Roisen contacted me about a county birding marathon in the Sandhills
that he was planning. He invited me to join him for the Garfield and Loup
County parts of the trip. We adjusted the plan a bit when the weather
forecast called for 100 degree high temperatures.
Paul and I met in Burwell Saturday evening, June 21, but it was still too
warm to go birding and Paul was exhausted. We talked about the places he
wanted to visit and his wish list of birds. We decided to start at a
roadside marsh north of Burwell where an American Bittern had been
reported.
Paul and I started our birding shortly after sunrise on Sunday, June 22.
Unfortunately, the wind was blowing hard already. We drove north of
Burwell on highway 11. The countryside is still lush, green and
beautiful. There was a lot of water in the rivers and marshes. We stopped
at the marsh where the bittern had been seen. In addition to the usual
birds, we heard Upland Sandpipers and Bobolinks. We also saw a Wilson’s
Snipe. Sadly, we didn’t see nor hear a bittern, however, Paul added two or
three new county birds. Paul hadn’t seen many common species so it was
easy to add to his total.
Our next destination was Burwell’s park and diversion dam. Notable species
were Eastern Wood-Pewee, Great-tailed Grackle and three Belted Kingfishers
chasing each other. Maybe the resident pair was chasing an intruder. Paul
added a couple more to his county list.
We stopped at the Willow Springs Banner cemetery just north of Burwell and
near the east end of Pebble Creek Road. Paul hadn’t been there before and
was impressed. We saw/heard several species including Great Crested
Flycatcher and Red-eyed Vireo. We drove slowly along Pebble Creek Road.
Paul had not been there before either. It is now on his personal list of
hot spots. We identified nineteen species along the first mile of the
road, including a towhee, Cedar Waxwing, and Black-capped Chickadee. Along
the part of Pebble Creek Road out on the prairie, we found Grasshopper
Sparrows, Bell’s Vireo, Lark Sparrow and very many Dickcissels.
We stopped at the end of the dam at Calamus Reservoir and were impressed by
the huge waves that the wind was whipping up. As we were driving to
Homestead Knolls, Paul said “We haven’t seen Vesper Sparrow or Field
Sparrow yet.” As we entered Homestead Knolls, the first birds we saw were
a Vesper Sparrow and heard a Field Sparrow. Well, if that’s going to be a
trend, then what else do you want to see?
At Valley View, we heard another Red-eyed Vireo and Cedar Waxwing. At
Gracie Creek, we heard a Blue Grosbeak. I heard a Willow Flycatcher but
unfortunately, Paul didn’t. We tried to walk trails at Hannamon Bayou but
they were not mowed and the biting insects were hungry. The wind was still
howling and the temperature was approaching 90 so we called it a day. Paul
added several new county birds to his Garfield and Loup County lists. I
was surprised to find that Eastern Wood-Pewee was new for me in both
counties. My Garfield total is 164 and my Loup is 183.
